Davis sentenced to probation

2016-12-01 | Mark Evan Smith of the Sierra Star

Ordered to stay away from county senior centers

Kathryn “Katie” Davis, former president of the Sierra Senior Center in Oakhurst, was sentenced Monday to three years of probation for a misdemeanor charge of financial elder abuse, which was reduced from a felony after she paid restitution of $30,000.

As part of her probation, District Attorney David Linn said Davis is ordered to stay away from all senior centers in Madera County, including the Sierra Senior Center.

“I believe the outcome was appropriate for this disputed case,” Linn said. “Considering the victim’s age, I have no desire to put him through the stress of a trial if justice could be achieved in another manner. Sometimes doing justice doesn’t mean throwing someone in jail. In this case, we hoped to obtain the money that was taken, and return it, for the benefit of the victim.”

On June 23, Davis, then 54, was arrested on suspicion she bilked then 90-year-old senior center regular Bill Youngs out of as much as $50,000.

Youngs was recently diagnosed with Alzheimer’s Disease at the time of Davis’s arrest, and said he didn’t remember transferring money over to her. Security camera footage showed the two present together at a bank in the City of Madera when the transfer was made.

In August, Davis plead no contest to the felony charge, with terms negotiated between her attorney, Paul Carpio of Fresno, and lead prosecutor John Baker to reduce the sentence if she paid back the $30,000.

Davis was sentenced by Judge Mitchell Rigby. Despite the charges, at the time of her arrest several people at Sierra Senior Center praised Davis for her work to improve its services.